In a message dated 6/6/2007 2:58:34 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
europa-list@matronics.com writes:
I typically fly 2 legs of 400 nm in the 8000 ~ 12,000'
> feet range. At this altitude I see 148 knots TAS with a fuel burn of
> 5.1 ~ 5.3 US gallons per hour.
Greetings team,
On a recent 758 nm cross country I saw a TAS of 146 kts at 9500' burning 4.6
gph with my Jab 3300. This was with my wife Susan and myself on board, along
with about 60 lbs of baggage. I'm running a ground adjustable Sensenich
hollow carbon prop set to a mid range cruise pitch, spinning at 2850 RPM in
cruise flight. My bird is sealed, i.e., has positive seals on the rudder,
ailerons
and trim tabs, along with flap gap seals. I should also note that
considerable time and attention was paid to the paint and mine has been color
sanded to
less than.004" waviness throughout. I have the "economy cruise" needle jet
and proprietary Jabiru "stepped" needle set up installed in the Bing carby
that is recommended by the Jabiru factory. N245E is a trigear and the empty
weight came in at 909 lbs including "standard" items that would normally be on
board such as headsets, a small tool kit, a quart of oil, fire extinguisher,
charts, knee board, CO monitor, etc. The "empty" empty weight is closer to
895lbs, and includes Mod 70 and Mod 71. I used an Odyssey battery and it is
mounted to the starboard footwell on the firewall. I did add 6 lbs of lead to
the tail to meet the narrow C of G range for the test period as suggested by
Europa, but that counterweight has since been removed.
Now, with just over 100 hours on N245E, IMHO, I firmly believe the Jabiru
3300 is an excellent choice for the Europa provided that it is coupled with the
Suncoast Sportplanes cowl set. I cannot speak for other cowl sets. I have
flown 912S powered Europa's, both mono and trigear, and one 914 powered mono
with glider wings, and in comparison, I can't detect any degradation in
handling due to the few extra pounds the Jab added. However, I can appreciate
the
1800 fpm climb rate I see regularly along with the smoothness of the Jab when
compared to the 912S. Just so everybody will know I'm not here to trash
Rotax, I also own an Aeromot AMT200S Super Ximango motorglider with a certified
912S swinging a Hoffman 3 position prop. Thus, I have working familiarity with
both engines and regularly compare the two. Both are fine engines and the
912S has a slight advantage in fuel economy, (as shown in a recent 1150 nm trip
in the Ximango) but, if given the choice between the Rotax 912S and the
Jabiru 3300, for the money, the simplicity, the smoothness in running and the
outstanding performance, I'd pick the Jabiru again over the 912S for my Europa
without any hesitation or reservation whatsoever.
One thing is certain: I can hardly contain myself until Airmaster releases
the new hub for the Sensenich blades at Oshkosh!
I wish the Brussels mob were as prudent as you suggest. We pay very high
taxes whereas perhaps your mob just print extra dollars. The result is
similar
You are partly correct, Graham. FWIW, here at the 'Possum Werks we watch
exchange rates daily between the Euro and the Dollar because we buy a lot of
glider parts, cloth, resin, gel coat, etc, from various suppliers and glider
manufacturers in Germany on behalf of our customers. Truth is, we here in the
colonies have a trifecta working against us in regard to the exchange rate. Our
taxes are too high, the Federal Reserve is (and has for several years)
printing and circulating too many dollars because they are deathly afraid of
even
the hint of inflation, and the elite's in Congress frivolously spend our
money like it is going out of style.
A point to ponder for us Yanks: According to the Government Accounting
Office, 2004 numbers, one-third of every dollar confiscated from you by the
Federal government in the form of taxes is wasted, stolen or otherwise cannot
be
accounted for. So, efficient they ain't! Think about that the next time you
hear a politico saying he/she wants to raise your taxes!
Regards,
John Lawton
Dunlap, TN (TN89)
N245E - Flying
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